This has been making the rounds, and I have been trying really hard to hold my tongue. I dont like saying that you have to be a parent to understand, but I really think that there are some things that one cant understand if they havent had to be solely responsible for a child for a prolonged amount of time (not just til they get cranky and then give them back). The thing that people who have not had to care for children seem to forget is that children are people. In one conversation, I saw it suggested that maybe the mother should not have been punished, but that she should have made the child come in to the store because letting him stay in the car was the wrong message or something. Second guessing which/how values are instilled is the most offensive kind of armchair parenting. So much totally unreasonable criticism of parents is about what they should be making their children do. Pray tell - how does one make a person go into a store when they dont want to do so. And as the logical follow up, because everybody loves to judge the parent of a screaming child, how does one make a person stop screaming hysterically in a public place? I dont care how good of a caretaker one is, there is always going to be some moment of truth where they MUST complete a task and the child will not, and two paths emerge: one of a full-blown atomic freakout, and one of placating, less-than-stellar compromise. Absent actual danger (not just wild speculation), I cant blame a parent for making a judgment call and taking the second path.
Posted on: Sun, 08 Jun 2014 13:44:03 +0000
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